Spectacular Southern Italian at Sotto

Sotto has become one of LA’s most talked-about food destinations, and for good reason: It cooks traditional Southern Italian food from locally seasonal ingredients. In a recent discussion, LA Chowhounds talked about their favorite dishes. The list of must-eats was long.

If you like pasta, Porthos suggests the fileja calabresi with squid ink, tomatoes, and peperoncino. The fresh, hand-rolled and -twisted pasta arrives perfectly al dente. Another solid pasta choice is the casarecce with lamb ragu.

For a classic entrée, both Porthos and Thor123 highly recommend the juicy, fennel-crusted pork chop. Other dishes to consider: braised octopus over chickpeas and bottarga (pictured), and pork meatballs.

Porthos also says to try the spectacular Neapolitan-style pizzas, cooked over burning white oak—they're so thin you may need a knife and fork. Though a few hounds dislike the floppiness of the slices, Porthos says that's typical of pizza in Naples; Sotto's simply nods to tradition.